Central A/C Question: Condensation Outflow Pipe Blockage

[Virgo10]

Have any of you ever had a problem with the pipe leading to the outside of the house getting blocked? Ours appears to be as we are getting water in our garage. It's a pricey deal to have an air conditioner company come out to the house and I'm wondering if any of you have ever fixed this yourself.

I went to Lowes for advise the other day and they said to try and move the blockage with the garden hose on full blast. It didn't work but I sure did get wet! We haven't resorted to cutting the pvc pipe yet but I have a feeling that's what will happen next. If we cut it where it runs straight, the hose trick might work. Those of you who have central air know how many twists and turns there are in the pipe that takes the water to the outside!

Any help or ideas would be most appreciated. BTW, the drip pan for this unit is on the bottom of the air conditioner and the pipes to take the moisture outside run under our garage floor. I guess in some units they run up in the attic and the drip pan is up there too. Weird!

 

[Margie J]

My condo heat pump which controls the AC had this problem. It leaked into the hall, a closet and down into the garage below.

One night a few weeks ago the backup was so bad that it shorted out the fan motor (I had only the fan on not the AC). Now I am going to replace the whole unit, estimated at over $4000! For now I have no AC and you know how "lovely" the weather is here.

You might want a qualified HVAC service tech check your AC out. It may be a worth the $$ before the problem gets worse.

 

[Laz]

I did two things to solve the problem. First, I cut a small round hole in the pipe and used Liquid Plumber to clear the block. Later I keep the pipe clear by occasionally pouring small amounts of bleach in it. Second, I repositioned the pipe to a greater downward slope. I hope this helps.

 

[ilovepcot]

Our pipes got blocked yesterday and we found a really nasty looking brown circle on our NEW ceiling! DH had to remove ceiling tiles and unblock pipes. House is old and pipes in newer houses aren't put in ceilings any longer...duh! Because of all the excess humidity and running air more than ever right now, there is more condensation which leads to probability of a blockage. I feel for you! Hope a really savvy "do it yourselfer" comes along to aid you.

 

[sorcerormickey]

UGH! What a predicament! Good luck with the blockage!

Our AC company told us to do the whole bleach pouring thing every 6 months or so, except we can't remember which pipe to pour it down! LOL! We've been here almost a year and haven't done it yet. I must remember to ask on our next AC check-up!

 

[Virgo10]

Shameless Bump just in case there's any HVAC DISers or others who might have a suggestion and didn't see this post.

 

[safetymom]

My pipe was blocked and the serviceman used a shop vac outside and sucked the yucky stuff out of the pipe.

 

[Dan Murphy]

We were told to pour white vinegar down the pipe every so often, for mineral deposits. But I would think bleach for mold and that. Certainly not combined. Good luck, Roberta.

Send a PM to Tiggeroo, I think her DH is HVAC.

 

[Breezy_Carol]

I keep the pipe clear by occasionally pouring small amounts of bleach in it.

Ours got blocked too. After it was cleared this is what the AC guy told us to do too. Ours has a trap by the condensate pump that we can disconnect and clean out.

Good luck. Don't want to be without the AC now.

 

[Meezers]

we have always used the vinegar and haven't had a problem in years....and we live in Atlanta and the AC runs from May to October!

 

[wfloyd]

We have this happen occasionally so here's what I do. First I usually put a cup of bleach in the drain pan ever three months or so. That helps keep things from growing in it. Next I either take a shop vac to the end of the pipe and suck out everything or run a plumbers snake down the pipe. It gets the clogs out quickly and everything is back to normal.

Barring any unforseen problems, it should take no more than 30 minutes to do. Normally it takes about 10.